Libyan Coastguardsman: “I’ve seen many contacts between NGOs and smugglers”

A commander from the Libyan coast guard has reaffirmed what many conservative voices have been saying for years – namely that NGOs are working hand-and-glove with human-smugglers to traffic migrants into Europe.

According to a report by Italy’s Il Giornale, the sailor, who is the commanding officer of one of the three patrol boats were donated to Libya by the Italian government, asserts that he’s personally witnessed direct proof of human traffickers contacting NGOs using social media platforms.

While talking with Il Giornale, the commander, named Mustafa said, “I have personally seen many contacts on Facebook or Twitter between NGOs and smugglers and I see many contacts between them.”

As the commander recounted his interactions with the migrant rescue NGOs, Mustafa went on to say, “I speak with the NGOs, I ask them not to approach to avoid putting migrants’ lives at risk. But sometimes they are not listening.”

“They are not listening, they just want to take the migrants. And this creates a dangerous situation,” the commander added.

Italian prosecutors have alleged for years now that these migrant transport NGOs have been working hand-in-glove with human traffickers to make sure migrants get aboard their sea vessels and eventually into Italy up until Salvini closed the ports.

Back in 2017, Italian prosecutor Carmelo Zuccaro alleged that phone calls were being made from Libya to NGO ships in the search and rescue (SAR) zone to coordinate the movement of migrants.

Also in 2017, authorities in Italy released photos which they asserted showed the German-based NGO Jugend Rettet collaborating with human traffickers in the Mediterranean.

The photos, which were published by the German daily newspaper Welt, showed people thought to be people smugglers escorting a group of migrants who were being collected by the NGO’s ship, the Iuventa.

Last year, a former NGO worker on one of the ships also spoke out about the connections between the NGO migrant transport vessel activists and the human smugglers.

Pietro Gallo, the whistle blower who worked security onboard the Vos Hestia – a ship operated by the NGO Save the Children – received death threats from activists and open borders advocates after he told Italian authorities about the links between the ship and people smugglers.